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AIBU?

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Original poster

Do you have savings accounts for your children?

80 replies

drizzleabit · 03/09/2021 14:42

I have 2 DC under 4 and have only just opened junior ISAs for them both. Are we a bit late starting this? It seems we are in mine and DH's family, as most of our family members (cousins etc.) have been saving for their DC since they were born.

We were getting a bit embarrassed as we kept on being given money for our DC's bday/Xmas gifts, but weren't able to actually put it in their own accounts and ended up spending it (especially cash as it's just gets put in a purse). We've now put all this money into their savings accounts. Is this a thing for other families? Most of my friends don't do this, they save for their DC but don't gift money or get given money as presents.

Guess my AIBU is,
YABU - this is totally normal and can't believe you've only just started saving
YANBU - this is not normal

OP posts:
dementedpixie · 03/09/2021 14:52

Mine got child trust funds when the government gave cash towards them. They got converted into junior ISAs last year. They also have savings accounts with a local high street bank

Member984815 · 03/09/2021 14:51

I opened accounts when they were born put birthday money in and other money gifts they got . Because I did it for the first I did it for the rest I think plenty of people don't open accounts for their children until school age . Schools often have a savings scheme for the children where I live and that's where they mostly start

3GreenPullups · 03/09/2021 14:50

No need to be embarrassed at all! Not late either.

we started a savings account for both ours at about that age. When they were too young we had a bank account for each in our names but they are labelled as beneficiaries (HSBC). It meant that christmas cheques in their name could be paid into that account. When they turn 11 you can get them a savings account complete with a debit card in their name (our eldest has one) and they can then be repsonsible for their own money and receive bank statements etc. When DS1 turned 11 he had a fair bit in the bank account we had opened 10 years earlier and we clearly did not want all that sent into the account he could then access so we transferred about £200 into it for his ongoing use and now his various birthday cheques etc get put into that.

MaskingForIt · 03/09/2021 14:47

We opened a JISA, Junior current account and a SIPP for our DS when he was 6 weeks old. Family had given him cheques which needed to be paid in in his name, but we would have done it anyway, and I have started paying into his SIPP to build up a pension for him.

You’re later starting than in my milieu, but I imagine some children never have accounts opened for them.

lannistunut · 03/09/2021 14:45

Everyone is different, there is no need to be embarrassed. We opened small accounts in their names around age 7. This was just for the birthday money etc.